Good deeds and revelations
by Kyria of Delphi
Summary: A young couple tries to help an old adversary.


The morning had begun quite happily; an invitation to lunch with her old suitemates from Hogwarts had arrived just after the daily letter from Viktor. She missed him horribly, but he was taking a much-needed vacation from the incessant fangirl harassment by spending a week at his parents' vacation home in Varna. He was doing some repairs and enjoying the peace and quiet of the secluded cove on the Black Sea coast.

Hermione met Lavender and Parvati at the new little cafe that had opened where Fortescue's Ice Cream Shoppe had been. The cafe reportedly had excellent food and a lovely decor. Run by Neville and Hannah Longbottom, the decor was lush garden, complete with many herbal plants and flowers.

Once Neville had taken their order for salad and pasta, the two girls asked Hermione when the wedding was going to be. She touched the heart-shaped peridot ring and matching necklace at her throat and said, "The first week of August is the tentative date. We haven't decided which day because of his schedule. I promise I will send you invitations when we decide."

Just then, a hated voice spoke up from behind them. "Don't you think he will want to know what went on in that tent you spent so much time in with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley all alone? Does he really think you are the innocent little girl he met at the Triwizard Tournament? I can tell him things that would make him walk away from you and never look back."

"Rita Skeeter! How dare you say things like that? Viktor knows exactly what was going on in that tent. He trusts me. He always has. I think you had better leave before the proprietor calls the Aurors." Hermione said, confidently.

The haggard looking ex-reporter slunk out of the door as Neville stared hard at her.

Upset at the disturbance, Hermione concluded her lunch with her friends and went to the Ministry to use the International Floo to visit Viktor.

She arrived at the beachfront house a few minutes later. She found Viktor outside repainting the small sailboat his parents owned.

"Hermione! What brings you here, love? Is something wrong?"

"Rita Skeeter showed up during my lunch with Lavender and Parvati. She is threatening to blackmail me about the time I spent with Harry and Ron in the tent. She actually thinks something went on." Hermione laughed.

Viktor joined in the laughter. "Little does she know that I know exactly what went on in there. The fact that I was close by all the time is something only you and I know. You didn't even sleep in the blasted tent. I didn't trust Weasley as far as I could toss him. It is a good thing we were married before you even left on the hunt for the Horcruxes." Viktor kissed her and called the house-elf his parents used to keep the house always ready for guests.

"Yasi, Madam Krum and I wish for a picnic on the beach. Will you provide something for us, please?"

Seconds later, a small female house-elf appeared in the shade of the palm trees on the beach with a large picnic basket, a cashmere blanket, Hermione's copy of Shakespeare's sonnets, and a bottle of elf-made wine.

The couple spent the balance of the afternoon lounging in the sun and thinking of ways to help the unfortunate wreck that Rita Skeeter had become.

As the sun went down over the Black sea, and the fireflies began to swarm, Hermione said, "The girls were asking again about a wedding date, Viktor. What are we going to do?"

"We simply have a big party the first of August and tell them there will be no wedding because we have already been married for over a year. Then we give the story to Rita on the condition that she turn her life around, quit the drinking, and report things factually, not the made-up nonsense she used to report. And then we can tell them about the baby."

He kissed her once again as they gathered up the picnic things and walked back to the house.

_Hermione Diggory's prompts were:_

_Someone attempts to blackmail Hermione into breaking her engagement to [the character of your choice]._

_Viktor is enjoying a peaceful tropical holiday away from his adoring fans when he bumps into a friend in need._

_The couple of your choice, a cashmere blanket, a picnic basket, fireflies, a peridot necklace_

_Shakespeare, a body of water_


End file.
